Why shout down a rain barrel when you can fill it with free H2O: Around The Town

Posted Aug 24, 2018

Rain barrels similar to this one, collecting water in a residential garden on Stanford Drive in Berea, can be purchased via the Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District. (Rich Heileman/Special to Cleveland.com)

BEREA, Ohio -- It's questionable as to whether anyone has ever actually shouted down a rain barrel -- or slid down a cellar door -- as suggested by songwriters Philip Wingate and Henry Petrie in their 1894 children's hit "Playmates," but in 2018, many are already using their barrels for a more practical reason -- to obtain free water for their gardens.

For those who use this method of water collection, or those considering it, the Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District will host a Rain Barrel Workshop from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Aug. 30 at the Coe Lake Pavilion in Berea.

In short, a rain barrel is a container used to collect and store rainwater that would otherwise be lost to runoff and likely diverted to a storm drain. Collected water can be used to water lawns and gardens.

The collected water is a free source of water and, according to the SWCD, "plants like it better than hose water because it is free of chlorine and fluoride."

Rain barrels can also be used to receive a reduction in the stormwater utility fee changed by the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District.

Rain barrels are $60 and $35 for Berea residents (the City of Berea provides the barrels). Costs include a downspout diverter.

Registration for this event is required. Contact Amy Roskilly for more information at 216-524-6580, extension 1005, or email aroskilly@cuyahogaswcd.org.

The Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District's mission is to advocate and implement best management practices for conservation of land and aquatic resources in a developed environment through education, stewardship and technical assistance.

Back completes program: Lauren Back of Backattack Snacks, 5121 W. 161st St. in Brook Park, has completed the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program at Cuyahoga Community College.

Back is one of 30 small-business owners in the program's latest graduating class. She spent 14 weeks at Tri-C studying a specialized business and management curriculum designed for entrepreneurs.

Previous graduates have seen their business outperform the broader economy while exceeding national and local averages in revenue growth and job creation.

Goldman Sachs' 10,000 Small Businesses is a $500 million initiative aimed at unlocking the growth and job creation potential of small businesses across the United States by providing them with greater access to business education, financial capital and business support services.

The 10,000 Small Businesses (10KSB) launched at Tri-C in Cleveland in May 2012.

The alumni list for the college's program now exceeds 600, with graduating business owners representing a variety of industries and businesses.

Back and her husband, Brian, founded Backattack Snacks in 2015 to give consumers a healthy snack alternative.

The company's products are available online and at a variety of Northeast Ohio retailers.

The next session of 10,000 Small Businesses begins in January, with applications due by Oct. 16.

A check for pantry: Edward Napoleon, representing People's Community Church, 631 N. Rocky River Drive in Berea, received a check from the Berea Kiwanis Club's April 2018 Empty Bowl fundraiser for the church's food pantry operation.

Napoleon explained that the pantry obtains all its food from the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, at very low cost.

He said the check enabled the pantry to receive and distribute 3,100 pounds of food the week of Aug. 21.

The People's Community Church Food Pantry has been in operation since 2012.

SCAN has regular hours: The SCAN Hunger Pantry, 398 W. Bagley Road, Suite 7, in Berea, has regular hours of operation from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the second Friday of the month and from 4 to 7 p.m. on the fourth Friday of the month.

Contact SCAN by phone at 440-260-7226.

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